MZ Wallace: Show and Sell

A good runway show can’t be beat for the theatrics and entertainment value. But after the 20 to 30 minute extravaganza, fashion houses get down to business in the showrooms. The best part? While Style.com has up to the minute photos of everything coming down the runway, the showrooms and tradeshows are where you have an opportunity to discover the next big bag (or necklace, shoe… you get the idea) and sometimes even the person behind the collection in detail. With runway season behind us, join us as we look back on some of our favorites for a little show and sell.

Fatigue Gigi Bag (top) and Leopard Grace Bag (bottom)

First up, MZ Wallace, who we spotted at Vendome Luxury. Monica Zwirner and Lucy Wallace Eustice are respectively the MZ and Wallace of the New York based MZ Wallace. Before setting out to create a range of affordable, stylish everyday bags Wallace Eustice worked as an accessories editor at Harper’s Bazaar and Elle, and Zwirner traveled the world as a stylist.

Though the company’s been around for ten years now, it’s become pretty firmly established that even those who can afford the highest priced items, aren’t lining up to buy them in the quantities they used to. With words like “classic,” and “value” becoming more fashionable than “extravagant” and “luxury,” the shift in consumer preference certainly can’t hurt in the brand’s quest to become the luxury lover’s second bag.

With most styles coming in at under $400, it’s easy to see why the bags are finding a wide audience. There are a few core styles that come in various types of fabrics, but the one you’ll see most often is a durable nylon with leather accents and quality hardware. The combination is one that offers the right balance of structure and lightness so that aside from all of the day to day paraphernalia you lug around, the bag isn’t one more thing weighing you down. And while the shapes are simple, there’s a wide range of colors and patterns that allow you to have a bag as noticeable or low key as you choose.

Most of the styles we saw were large enough for a netbook, smartphone and a good amount of random purse stuff, plus enough pockets to keep it all organized and have hope of not losing everything to the great handbag abyss that makes finding keys a 10-minute task.